CONGRESS. The following was read in the House of Rxp*es£Ntativis on Moday last. Trcafury-Dtpattment, Feb. 4, 1793* SIR, I HAVE loft no time in preparing, as far as has been pra&icable, confident ly with the courfc of facts, the several statements required by the resolutions of the House of Representatives of the 23d of lad month ; and I have concluded to add to them such further statements as ap peared to me necessary to convey fully the. information which is ur.derftood to be the cbjeft of those resolutions. It was my firft intention to submit these Statements col lectively, with such explanatory remarks as the occasion might demand ; but find ing on experiment, from the extent and variety of the mater involved in the reso lutions, that more time will be riquifite for a full development of it than I had anti cipated, considerations of weight in my mind have determined me to present the different parts of the fubjeft successively. Among other advantages incident to this course of proceeding, will be that of hav ing it in my power to give a more accu rate and mature view of the entire fubje£t, without too great a dereliction of the cur rent business of the Department. In exe cuting the task I propose to myfelf, I rely on the indulgence of the House to a latitude of observation, correfpopd ing with the peculiar circumstances of the cafe. The resolutions to wliich I am to an swer, were not moved without a pretty copious display of the reasons on which they were founded. These reasons are be fore the public, through the channel of the prefe. They are of a nature to excite attention—to beget alarm—to inspire doubts. Deductions of a very extraordi nary completion may, without forcing the sense, be drawn from them. I feel it incumbent upon me to meet t'ae suggestions, which have been thrown out, with decision and explicitnefs. And while I hope, 1 lhall let fall nothing in consistent with the cordial and unqualified refpeft which I feel for the House of Re prefcntatives,—while I acquiesce in the fufficiency of the motives that induced on their part the giving a prompt and free course to the invcftigation proposed—l cannot but lefolve to treat the fubje& with a freedom which is due to truth and to the consciousness of a pure zeal for the public interest. I begin with the last of the four resolu tions ; because it is th»t which seeks in formation relative to the most delicate and important of the suggestions that have been hazarded. Here however I have to regret the ut ter impoflibility of a drift compliance with the terms of the resolution. The pra&icability of such a compliance would suppose nothing less than that lince the feu of December 1792, all the ac counts of all the CdHe&ors of the Customs and other officers of the Revenue through out the whole extent of the United States could be digested, made up, and forward ed to the Titafury,—->ould be examined thete, fettled and carried into the public books under their proper heads. In a word, that all the accounts df the reve nues, receipts and expenditures of this ex tensive country, could have passed through a complete exhibition, examination and adjustment, within the fliort period of twenty-three days. It was made (as I presume from the re-* fult) fatisfa&orily to appear to a Com mittee of the Konfe of Representatives, who were charged during the lad fefiion with framing a direction to the Treasury for bringing foi ward an annual account of Receipts and Expenditures, that the course of public bufmefs would not admit of the rendering offuch an account in less than nine months after the expiration of each year ; in conformity to which idea their report was formed and an order of the Hotifc eftablithed. I need do nothing more, to evince the impra&icability of an exact compliance with the resolution in question, than to observe, that it is even more comprehen sive (though with less detail) than the or der of the House "to which I have allud ed. To evince nevertheless my readiness to do all in my power towatds fulfilling the views of the House, and throwing light upon the tranfaftjons of the department, I (hall now offer to their infpe&ion sun dry statements marked A, AB, B, C, D, E» F, which contains as far as is at this time poflible, the information defir«d, — and with fufficient accuracy to afford fa tisfa&ion on the points of enquiry involv ed in the Resolution. The Statement A, shews in ahftradi the whole of the Receipts into, and Ex penditurs from the Treasury, commencing with the firft of January and ending with the lad of December 1792, —correspond- ing with the accounts of the Treasurer. These accounts have been regjplarty Fet tled lip to the end of September, and co pies have been laid before the two Houses of Congress. The account of the quarter terminating with the year, has not yet palled through the forms of settlement— but is fonder examination, and will, no doubt, be fettled as it Hands, —the man ner of conducting the business and the usual care and accuracy of the officer con cerned leaving very little room to appre hend miftatement or error. A copy of it is herewith transmitted in the schedule marked C. g§ This Statement takes up the balance of the General Account of Receipts and Ex penditures, to the end of the year -179 1 » as repotted to the House of Representa tives, within the firft week ofthe present fefiion, and continuing it down to the end of 1792, Ihevvs a balance then tn the Treasury of 783,444 dollars and 5 1 cents. The Statement B is a .more compre hensive document. It is k Ac count of Income and Expenditure. It (hews not merely the actual Reciptc of money into the Treasury, but the whole amount of the National Revenues from the commencement of the present g#vern ment to the conclusion of the yea* 1791, as well out/landing as colle&ed, —the pro ceeds of domestic loans, —the whole a mount of the sums which have been drawn into the United States on account of the proceeds of the foreign loans, *and all other monies, from whatever source, which have accrued, within the period embraced by the statement. These items form the debit iide of the account amounting to 1 dol- lars and 33 cents. Thecreditfide conlilts of two items.First, the whole amount of the actual expendi tures to the end of the year 1791, as dat ed in the General Account of Receipts and Expenditures before referred to. Se cond, the whole amount of the actual ex penditures during the year 179®, as fpe cified generally in the ftatemeat A, and particularly in the several quarterly ac counts of the Treasurer, amounting to 14,765, iaß dollars and 83 cents. The balance of the Account of Incotne and Expenditure is consequently 5,114- 696 dotlars and 50 cents ; which corre sponds with the Excess of the Public In come (including the proceeds ofloans fo reign and domestic) beyond the a&ual Expenditure, or more properly speaking, Di/iurfement to the end of the year 179»» This of coutfe is exclusive of thafe parts of the proceedis of foreign loani y/hich have been left in Europe to be ,applied there ; the amount, application and ba lance are exhihited, as far as they are yet known at tbe Statement No. 1, of my late report on foreign loans. . This Balance, as noted in the State ment B, is composed of the following par ticulars : I. Calh in the Treafury,per Dollars, {latement A. 785444 .51 11. Calh in the Bank of the Uni ted States, and the Offices of Dis count and Deposit of New York, and Baltimore, not yet passed to the account of the Treasurer, per statement A, B. 111. Proceeds of Amsterdam bills remaining in depolit in the Bank , of North America, including the fumof 156,595 dollars and 56, cts. advanced by the Bank without in-1 ' tereft, which is credited in the ge neral account of receipts and ex penditures, ftatemefit A, IV. Proceeds of Amsterdam bills fold, but not yet received 61 45 93 02 V. Ca(h in hands of colleitors of customs, per ab(lra£t D, 151851 25 VI. Bonds unpaid at the end of the year 1792, on account of the duties on imports, and falling due between that time and May 1794, per abftraa E, 2442069 15 VII. Uncolle&ed residue of du- ' ties on spirits distilled within the United States, per abftra<st F, This aggregate fomewliat exceeds the balance of the account ; but in cafe wbere estimates mull necessarily supply the defi 290 cieney of ascertained results, differences ef this nature are of course. It is at the fame time fatisfattory to observe, that the efti mates which have been heretofore com municated are proved by the official docu ments already received, to have been el fentially correct. It will no doubt readily occur to the House that a very small part of the excess, which has been stated, is a real futplus of income. There remain to be fatislied ob fe&s of Expenditure charged, upon the fund by the appropriations which have been made, that cannot fail ultimately to exhautt it probably within four or five hundred thousand dollars ; which will be embraced in the appropriations for the service of the year 1793. A further ex planation on this point is reserved for fu ture communication. A due comprehension of the statements now presented, mud obviate every idea of a balance unaccounted for ; in whatever sense the allegation may have been intend ed to be made. If there was before any obfeurity on the fubjedt, it was cettainly not the fault of this Department. Till the last reflati ons, no call has been made upon it, which rendered it proper to exhibit a general view of the public monies and funds, —or to (hew the amount and situation of such as were unapplied. Particular calls for par ticular objects were made which as I con ceive were complied with ; but they were not comprehensive enough to embrace a difclofuit of that nature. It could not theiefore with propriety have been alledged that there was a ba lance unaccounted for. To infer it fron. documents, which contained only a part of the necessary information, was not juf tifiable, nor could it otherwise happen, than that conclusions wholly erroneous would be the consequences of taking such imperfect data for guides. It may be of use by way of elucidation, to point out some of the tnoft palpable features of the errors which has been en tertained. The following Items are dated as the balls of the supposed deficiency : Residue of the proceeds of the Fo r eign bills supposed to be unapplied [after deducing the sums furnifhed for St. Domingo, and the amount of the debt to Foreign officers] Surplus of Sinking Fund, meaning, that part of the surplus of the revenue to the end of the year 1790, which had not been applied in purchases Surplus of the revenue of the year 1791, as reported Dollars 4345575 Dedu<3 in Bank, meaning, I pre sume, the balance of the trcalurer's cash account, It appears in the fit ft place to have been overlooked! that in Statement No. 3, of my late report concerning foreign loans, mention is made, that on the 3d of Janu ary there remained to be received of the proceeds of the foreign bills 633,131 dol lars and two cents; consequently that sum could not be confldeted a« in the Treasury, and ought to be deduced from the supposed deficiency. Among the official papers which it i» intimated were consulted, was an original account, rendered by the Bank of the United States, of the falesof Amsterdam Bills, (hewing a sum of 605,883 dollars and'B cents, as having been received by the Bank and two of its Offices of Dis count and Depolit, for the proceeds of Ihofe Bills. Had that document beer, un derstood, it would have been known, that this sum was in Bank over and above the Balance of the Treasurer's Cash Account; and this also would have served to ac count for a large part of the supposed de ficiency ; namely 605,883 dollars and 8 cents. The course of this tranfa&ion will be hereafter explained. 605883 o8 But among the misconceptions which have obtained, what telatesto the surplus of Revenue for the year 1792, is not the least striking. Thelcmis inform (andcon fequently no information on that point from this Department could have been necelTary) that credits are allowed upon the duties on Imports, of four, fix, nine, twelve months, and in some cases of two years. Reason dictate«, that a surplus in such cafe, mull be considered as poltpon ed in the Collection or Receipt, till all the appropriations upon the fund have been firft fatisfied. The account of Receipts and Expenditures for the year 1791, in pofleflion of the House, shews that at that time, no less a sum than 1,828,289 dol 17799 s 80 341057 19 Dollars j 110897 00 Balaacc unaccounted for lars and *8 cents of the anticeduft were outtlanding in Bonds. How th cn could it have happened, that the f urp l U! of 1792, was fought for in the 1 , ea f Ury at the very infant of the expiration of t& year ? I forbear to attempt to rrace ih« fourceof a mistake To extraordinary. Let me however add, that of the Sut. plus in queftioh, 172,584 dollars and 8: cents, ate not payable till April and May 1794, as will be seen by the A hit raft £. Thus have I not only furntfhed a jult and affirmatiVtf"*iew of the realisation of the PublTc Account, but have liltewifc shewn, 1 trust in a conspicuous 'manner, fallacies enough in the Statement, front which the inference ot an unaccounted for balance is drawn, to evince that it is one tilTue of error. In this, I might have gont still further, there being scarcely a ftepoi the whole process, which is not liable to the imputation of mifapprehenfton. Bat I wi(h not unnecessarily to weary the pa. tience of the House, Another circumstance to which im. portance has been given, and which »ai noticed in connection with the suggestion last difcqfled, is a disagreement between a Memorandum in the Treafufer's Bank Book and the Statement reported by me, of the amount of Bills drawn at the Trea. fury upon the Foreign Fund. Such a dis agreement no doubt exists, and to the ex tent of 5,760,138 florins or guilders— But the following circumstances con tain the solution of tjjis di&mistiDg ap pearance. There will he found in the Statement A, two several credits; each for 2,000,000 dollars, as for monies received into the Treasury, with correfpondino Debits of equal sums as for monies paid out of the Treasury. But neithei the one t)or the other did in reality take place. The whole is a mere operation, to accomplish the purpo- Fes of the Xlth feftion of the ast to incor porate the fubferibers to the Bank of the United States } without an inconvenient and unneceflary displacement of< funds. That Section authorizes a subscription to the stock of the Bank, on account of the Government, not exceeding in a mount two millions of dollars, and pro vides for the payment of it out of the mo nies which (hould be borrowed by virtue of either of the acts of the 4th and nth of August 1790, the firft making provisi on for the public Debt, the la ft for reduc. 1668190 400000 ing it ; enjoining at the fame time, that a Loan should be made of the Bank to an equal amount, to replace the monies which were to be applied to the payment of the fubfeription. It is evident, that nothing could have been more useless (at the fame time that it would have been attended with obvious disadvantages to the government) than actually to draw from Europe, out of th« monies borrowed there, the sum necessary for the payment of the Subscription to the Batik, and again to remit out of the Loan which was to be obtained of the Bank a fufficient sum to replace those mo nies or such part of them as may have been dellined for the foreign dbjeft. Loss upon exchange in consequence of over (locking of the market with Bills.—Loss in i«vtercft by the <Jelayfr incident to (!«:<* peration ; and which would necessarily have suspended the ufeful employment ot the fund for a considerable time. These are some of the disadvantages to the Go vernment. To the Bank alone could any benefit have acctued ; which would have been in proportion to the delay in re 't° r ' ing or applying the fund to its primitive destination. Such an operation therefore could only have been juftified by an io difpofition on the part of the Bank to fa cilitate the principal object, without the intervention of actual payment. But no such disposition existed. On this, as on every other occlfion, a temper liberal towards the Government has cha rafterifed the condudt of the Directors o that institution. It was accordingly proposed by rn f i and agreed to by them, that the objev to be accomplished should be carried ,ntc effect by a merely formal arrangement. In this however it was neoefiary to cos' fult the injunctions of law, and the P rin " ciples of the constitution of the Trea ur J Department. , These points then were to be eiiettea a payment of the Subscription money, ,c veil the Government with the property of the Stock,—possession of the means ol paying it, which were to be derived row the foreign fund, and ofcourfe were to be in the Tieafury before payment »7738* 79064* 15J4933
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